Without limiting the scope of the invention, its background is described in connection with tire identification systems, as an example. In tire interrogation systems a transponder is provided in a vehicle tire for interrogation by a reader or interrogator. The interrogator typically operates with an antenna that is at a fixed location by which the tire will pass. Other embodiments include applications in which an interrogator is mobile and is moved about to identify tires with which the interrogator comes in proximity. It is desirable for the interrogator and antenna to be sensitive to signals received from the transponder located in close proximity, but relatively insensitive to noise from sources located at a greater distance.
Prior art approaches include using single loop antennas with or without interrogator filters that filter all but a small frequency band of interest from the received signal. Other prior art approaches include using balanced double loop antennas that have two or more loops of opposite polarities and equal size to cancel far field or homogeneous noise.